FAQs

Global Distribution: where need meets resource

We are donated excellent quality goods by business and private donors. We distribute these to people in need, in Hong Kong and around the world. Global Distribution is a crossroads between need and resource.

We ask our donors to deliver goods to us, please.WHY DELIVER: This may be a surprise to some as, in the past, we had volunteers collect goods. We can no longer do that, sadly, for two reasons.* Firstly, we have been overwhelmed by Hong Kong’s generosity. So many Hong Kong people now kindly donate that we cannot find sufficient volunteers to staff a pick-up service. Some donors therefore suggested we switch to a delivery model. We were reluctant to do so, as we know this costs our donors. Yet, they pointed out, it also costs, in Hong Kong, for people to have goods taken away for trash. They had a point. We listened. Finally, reluctantly, we changed our model.

* Secondly, as you may have heard, we are needing to move from our current premises. This is happening in phases, over the coming years, but is already underway now. We are in for a difficult few years with major labour needs. As a result, we are having to direct more labour resource to getting us through and beyond this move.

Those to whom we ship rarely have money for transport. Normally, therefore, we ask transport companies for free or discounted rates. We then fundraise against the costs remaining. Want to sponsor a shipment? Want to request a shipment? Occasionally, shipment recipients can raise their own funding. Where this is the case, we can ship much more quickly.

Quality of donors. We are usually given surprisingly high quality goods.

Many products come from manufacturers and are brand new.

Many come from five star hotels or multi-national companies and, while not new, are of the professional quality needed to facilitate their operations.

Others come from hospitals and universities, both of which must also offer high quality service.

Further donations come from individuals/families. Hong Kong has an itinerant expat population which often sees excellent household goods donated.

Checking and processing. Everything we receive is checked by our army of volunteers. Crossroads has 14 processing departments, in which we assess goods for their quality and suitability. Faulty items are either repaired or recycled.

We are painfully aware of the fact that the wrong kind of humanitarian aid does more harm than good. As we seek best practice, therefore, we are guided by both those whom we serve and those who co-labour in the humanitarian sector.When distributing goods, we are led by the people who are receiving them. Our partners tell us their needs/project plans and we liaise closely to hand-pick products that will be most strategic. In this, we are guided by the recipient’s strategic goals and target group needs. We also factor in cultural and climatic constraints, as well as the rules driving their nation’s customs requirements.The result is a highly tailored shipment, fit, as closely as possible, to purpose.

In Hong Kong, we distribute via the Social Welfare Department’s referrals or through NGOs registered with the HKSAR. Internationally, we have a robust application available for registered non-profit organisations anywhere in the world. These organisations explain the history of the work, describe its scale and reach, submit plans for which these resources are needed and agree to feedback mechanisms and site visits. Each also provides references from trusted NGOs. We tend to focus our efforts on empowering organisations who are not already receiving substantial help from other sources.